The Africa Alliance of YMCAs (AAYMCA) convened on the 20th April 2017, to launch the Second Edition of The Annual Career Expo and Beyond! dubbed CareerManenozII. This is a follow-up of the first Career Expo and Beyond! held in November 2016, which witnessed participation from over 1200 youth who were connected to diverse opportunities including training, mentorship, skills development, business incubation, internships, career guidance and job opportunities by over 30 exhibitors and partners.
Speaking during the event, Mr. Carlos M. Sanvee, the General Secretary Africa Alliance of YMCAs, noted that CareerManenoz aims to connect youth to diverse opportunities. “CareerManenoz is our answer to harnessing the youth potential and connecting it to the right career and entrepreneurship opportunities with the ultimate goal of ensuring sustainable social, political, and economic growth at national, continental and global levels”, he said.
The launch was graced by the Chief Executive Officers and Managing Directors from leading Public and Private Sector, County Government officials, delegates from different High Commissions, Heads of Civil Societies, leading academic institutions and other partners in the development sector.
Speaking during the event, Ben Omondi from Bemos Craft Developers noted that the informal sector is crucial in yielding employment and enterprises opportunities to the youth. He noted that “the youth should seek to develop sustainable business solutions that will address diverse community needs”.
Pius Ng’ang’a, a Nairobi based business consultant, giving his take on youth and entrepreneurship during the launch.
Also present was Gregg Weltz, the Senior Youth and Workforce Development Advisor at USAID, who noted the need for collaboration between different sectors to address the unemployment problem in the nation. “Youth’s skills and potential should be aligned with the market need to enhance their productivity”, he said.
The launch will be followed by different career and entrepreneurship drives in 24 YMCA branches across 17 counties in Kenya, which will culminate to the main Career Expo and Beyond! between 1st and 4th November 2017 at YMCA Kenya, Nairobi Central Grounds, opposite Nairobi University.
